Authors and Book Events
So, all this discourse about authors and book events.
After running hundreds of book events, more, and attending whole lists, as author, as publicist, and as fan, I’m going to push the boat (book) out here, and say one thing: book events are <hard>.
From an author perspective, writing is a solitary undertaking. We spend a one hell of a lot of time, in our own heads, playing with our imaginary friends and the worlds they inhabit. That isn’t to say we’re anti-social – when we get together, we can be quite the opposite – but sometimes, if we’ve been a long time wrapped in our own thoughts, being suddenly around a lot of people can be very overwhelming. It isn’t that we don’t love you, or don't want to be there, it’s that the noise levels can be a bit high, or a bit sudden.
From an organiser’s perspective, authors – particularly the big names – work their arses off at public events. I’ve seen SFF authors-of-note work for four and five hours straight, greeting very fan, one after another, with a handshake and a smile, a signature and a dedication, and a stand for a photo. They’ve answered questions, accepted gifts with grace and gratitude, talked about a fan’s favourite character or paragraph or scene, often many times in succession, and always with genuine enthusiasm. Sometimes, if they’re tired, an author’s subconscious can take over and they'll sign a book, ‘Dave Would You Like A Biscuit', but please understand, this is purely from weariness.
Authors don’t show it – they’re professionals – but this stuff is exhausting. A really big book signing can have a queue of hundreds, and every fan, every reader, will be greeted the same.
Also – from a personal perspective anyway – speaking in public is really daunting. I’m quite happy, reading or talking on or modding panels, but I find standing up and speaking cold to be utterly terrifying. I’ve done it, it’s a part of the game, but dear Gods it’s not easy.
And lastly, if you are a popular author, around at a Con or an open format event, that can be hard, too. A lot of people may want to talk to you. Everything is busy and whirling and moving really fast, and you can mishear people, or not quite catch their names. Authors do their absolute best, but sometimes, the whole thing really will turn into a big ol’ wave of sensory overload.
So, please, this is a little message, bubbled up from more than twenty years and from every side of the business:
Be kind.
Reading: As a little holiday break, I’m re-reading The Hobbit (after watching the Jackson movies, and dear Gods). The last time I read the book, it was to Isaac when he was tiny, and I had forgotten the simplicity and charm and magic of the text and its riddles and rhymes. It underlines how vastly too big all these licenses have become, now. We don’t need another LOTR story. We don’t need more sodding Star Wars.
Please, for the love of every dog, make something new. Something little, and find that charm once more.
Watching: True Blood, which I haven’t watched in years (used to have a bottle of it, on my desk at FP, a very long time ago, left over from some promo or tother). I’d forgotten how smutty it is, but, in terms of ‘older vampire becomes smitten with hot blonde’ it’s surprisingly convincing and both Paquin and Moyer turn in startlingly good performances.
And who doesn’t love Lafayette?
Playing: After a very, very long break, I’ve gone back to playing NeverWinter, something I was obsessed with, over lockdown. It’s much more of a ‘pick up and put down’ online RPG, something that you can dip and in and out of, and hence leave alone (as it’s not an ongoing story, like Baldur’s Gate). It is kind of mesmeric, tho’, and I call to mind a comment made by one of D&D buddies, a couple of weeks ago, about putting a post-it on the TV, saying ‘Are you still enjoying this?’
Because if you are, great. But if you’re not, then you’re teetering on the edge of a dopamine problem (more about that here), and it’s time to touch some grass.